The department’s community action officers are assigned to monitor ongoing problems. They focus on preventing crime in businesses and in areas where people live in close proximity to each other, such as apartment complexes.

As part of the department’s PRIME (Problem Resource Identification Method Evaluation) approach, officers are instructed to watch for potential problems in the community and suggest solutions, Maj. Jack Kelley said.

One PRIME project was to suggest the purchase of first-aid kits for patrol cars. In case of an accident or other injury, "we’re usually always the first one there,” Kelley said.

Another example was that officers conducted a successful surveillance from a vacant apartment in an apartment complex that had been plagued with burglaries, Kelley said.

Recent improvements at the police department include a new crime lab and property room.